The Absolutely Worst Places to Live in America

By Dave Gilmartin

Book Overview

The Absolutely Worst Places to Live in America surveyed thousands of Americans to find the fifty dirtiest, smelliest, most miserable cesspools, armpits, and tourist traps that make up this great land of ours. The "winners" of this awful distinction include the likes of: -+ Atlantic City, New Jersey - Come for the slots. Stay for the gang warfare and fourth-rate prostitutes. -+ Gary, Indiana - Like a sewer populated by 100,000 people. -+ Carson City, Nevada - Perfect for folks burned out on the high culture of Reno. -+ Fairbanks, Alaska - Take the most horrible place you've ever been, then subtract the sun. -+ Jacksonville, Florida - Possibly the foulest-smelling city in the Western hemisphere. -+ Camden, New Jersey - Once the proud home of America's first mass murderer, it's been all downhill since then. Perfect for your friends unfortunate enough to live in Baltimore or Houston, The Absolutely Worst Places to Live in America is an uproarious look at the dregs of our otherwise wonderful country. Paper-Over-Board Edition

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0312351518
• ISBN13: 9780312351519
• Release Date: October 2006
• Publisher: St. Martin's Griffin
• Length: 272 Pages
• Weight: 0.64 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.9" x 0.9" x 4.6"

Customer Reviews

Utterly Hilarious

This is a terrific, witty, and zesty discussion of fifty awful places, and what makes them truly special. The negative reviews of this book are apparently by people who don't understand the grand tradition of humorous travel writing (Bill Bryson, etc.). Highly recommended.

the truth about Seattle

Absolutely the most accurate description I have ever heard of Seattle. The only thing he failed to mention are the stump humpin' hippies. I can't wait to get out of the Rat City.

A+++ Would do business again.

This is one of those tongue in cheek style books that I will love for many years. I've read it twice and several people have borrowed it, they all loved it. Theres really not a lot I can say about the book in the review however, it takes the fun away from it. I guess the best way to decide would be if you laughed at the preview, you'll love it. -Brucey

Barstow sucks

If you have ever passed through Barstow you have seen the whole town. New houses here run through the 300K and I have no idea why. Barstow is certainly one of the worst places to live. Too hot in the summer and too cold during the winter. Closest town with things to do is 40 miles away and civilization is 100 miles away. I can count decent restaurants using 3 fingers. It's a small town with big city crime rates. New businesses are rare and most people don't come to stay, they just pass through. And that's what you should do if you know what's best for your family.

The World's Most Dangerous Places, Yuppie Version

I read some of the reviews for this book in the local paper, so I bought the book. It's an excellent book, but I can't help imagining this book as the yuppie version of Robert Pelton Young's The World's Most Dangerous Places. Some of the places are scary - just reading about Camden, NJ has cured me from ever visiting there. Others, like Allston and Cambridge, MA are accurate for their descriptions. Some of the other cities, especially in the west and south, sounds a lot like whining...no gyms, no organic food, no art, restaurants aren't up to exacting standards, people are overly friendly, people actually vote Republican (horrors of horrors!), skinheads, hicks, humorless liberals, homeless people on Skid Row, etc. Interspersed with this are PR spokesperson who try - lamely - to give the guilty city some spin. Weasel words abound, but you can't make a slum "vibrant" even if you put a fake front on it. Perhaps that's the beauty of the book; Dave Gilmartin gives an introduction for each city, with little bits of trivia sprinkled among the letters and rebuttals. Perhaps this should be a primer for those who want to know their surroundings outside the tourist lights and social scene, where you can be sitting in paradise with hell and brimstone across the street. Some of the quotes, however, merit a look as well, as there are some bigots masquerading illegally as progressive-minded strangers.